The mayor of Mount Vernon faces felony charges in a public corruption case brought by the New York state Attorney General’s office.
State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman alleges Mount Vernon Mayor Richard Thomas stole nearly $13,000 in campaign funds and lied about more than $45,000 he diverted from his inaugural committee for personal benefit. Schneiderman alleges that Thomas’ scheme began during his 2015 mayoral campaign.
“We allege that Thomas, who ran on a platform of cleaning up corruption in Mount Vernon, was, in fact, taking money from his campaign account to pay for personal expenses,” Schneiderman said.
Schneiderman says the investigation continues. Speaking to reporters Monday, Thomas said the allegations are not true and he expects to be fully vindicated.